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Some levels at Alewife parking garage to re-open Wednesday for people who want to take a bus somewhere; Red Line service could resume by Saturday
By adamg on Tue, 02/07/2023 - 9:03pm
The MBTA announced today that all but the topmost level of the Alewife garage will re-open tomorrow, but that the Red Line will continue to end and begin at Davis as engineers figure out how to get people onto trains without having to pass under a metal framework damaged when some guy in a Civic rammed into a concrete barrier on the garage's top level, sending the five-ton concrete slab down towards the station atrium - only to be stopped by the metal supports for large window panels.
In lieu of Red Line service, the T has been running shuttle buses to and from Davis.
The T says it hopes to resume Red Line service in coming days via the Russell Field entrance, which is a two-minute walk from the garage. The T adds:
Before the headhouse can be used, the T needs to provide riders with a safe and accessible pathway. The T is currently installing signage and lighting along a path and providing customers access through a tunnel under the Alewife Brook Parkway to reach the headhouse.
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Comments
I really hope the T is going
I really hope the T is going after the driver and the drivers insurance for the huge mess and inconvenience they created.
Intentional??
Early reports on Cambridge day indicate at the driver may have "intentionally" driven his car into the wall, although later reports seem to be walking back on that statement. MBTA police say they "will update when appropriate."
https://www.cambridgeday.com/2023/02/05/alewife-t-station-to-be-closed-f...
https://www.cambridgeday.com/2023/02/06/car-crash-could-have-been-absolu...
https://www.cambridgeday.com/2023/02/07/alewife-parking-mostly-reopens-w...
I wonder how this is
I wonder how this is affecting transportation and traffic in the region. Alewife is one of the busier terminus hubs and absorbs a huge number of commuters from the route 2 basin
it would be interesting to
it would be interesting to see how ridership on the fitchburg line has been impacted. pre pandemic i drove to alewife instead of taking the commuter (fitchburg) line, mostly because it was more expensive and (somehow) more unreliable.
since Alewife is really the only place to park* on the red line before you hit boston** proper, I'm sure this is causing a bunch of issues throughout the area.
*based on the expectation of a) actually getting a space & b) being able to park in that spot for entire workday without having to move or refeed a meter.
**the parking garages in harvard/central are all tiny and are barely less expensive than driving the additional mile into boston and having better luck finding a garage spot.
When I worked in Harvard
When I worked in Harvard Square I'd park at Alewife until I was offered a spot through work in Harvard Square itself. There was a huge price difference . That matches up with your point about parking.
It's my understanding that the entire point of the Alewife garage was because route 2 was expanded in preparation for the never built 695 loop and the state wanted to do something with this high capacity road that just slammed into Cambridge without a proper transition.
Talk about car focused transportation
It sounds like they are waiting to open the Russel field headhouse until it's a nicer walk from the parking garage. That's foolish and a waste of money and time to make people take a shuttle to Davis when Alewife could be used right now.
It's also insulting to those of us who have been using that headhouse since the station opened and are already accustomed to walking around to the back of the station or coming from other parts of the city. That's the minuteman / community path route too.
If the walkways around the back of the station need better lighting and signage, it shouldn't take a car collision to force the improvement.
It's not just about some lights...
...but likely the issue of emergency exit routes. With the main entrance closed off until they can ensure the roof structure is secure, there's only one way in and out of the station (via the Russell Field entrance). They at least need to ensure there's a safe secondary exit route via the main entrance before they can let the public back down to track level.
Based on the update yesterday, it sounds like it'll be a while before the main entrance is reopened. While that roof structure may have miraculously not collapsed under the weight of the concrete slab, I gotta wonder how much of it will ultimately need to be replaced for the long run.
I'm just going by the T's statement
Which didn't mention emergency exits, only the walkway outside from the garage to the East headhouse. But maybe I missed something.
To respond to comment on another thread, No, I don't trust the T to do the right thing. If there's a structural reason to keep the station closed they shouldn't be talking about a pathway to the Russell field headhouse.